This invention relates generally to the field of elements which connect together, and more particularly concerns writing devices which connect together.
Drawing tools such as colored pencils, crayons, markers, and the like, satisfy creative and developmental needs of children. Construction toys, widely used by children as a playtime staple, can also be educational, and stimulate a child""s imagination while satisfying a need for creative expression.
It would be desirable for markers to be combined with construction elements, which can be used to create three-dimensional figures and models. Thus, two popular forms of children""s self-expression could be combined to allow an easy, seamless transition between two-dimensional and three-dimensional modes of expression.
The invention provides such a device. These and other advantages of the present invention, as well as other additional inventive features, will be apparent from the description of the invention provided herein.
The invention provides for a set of markers which connect together and which may utilize a pivoting ball-and-socket connection between individual markers. In one embodiment, individual markers may include ball portions and socket portions disposed at both of their ends. The connections may then be formed by snapping a ball portion into a socket portion, resulting in a pivoting, rotatable connection.
Each individual marker may consist of a body, an end plug, an ink reservoir, a writing nib, and a removable cap. In one embodiment, the cap includes at least one ball portion. The end plug of this embodiment is receivable within an open end of the marker body and includes at least one socket portion that receives a ball portion as described above. In other embodiments, the design of the cap and end plug allows for the connection of multiple markers at the end of each marker.
The marker cap may also be ventilated so as to provide an air passageway through the cap in the event the cap becomes lodged in a child""s throat.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings in which: